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From Charnosdnd
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Summary/Setting
Rules: 24 point buy, 1-4: 1 point, 15+ 2 points, max bought up to 18, 20 with racial bonus. Start at 3rd level with 1 magic item of second, third and fourth level and 520 GP.
Summary: Charnos is an odd little world that, until a few millenia ago, was unclaimed and godless, home to only 3 humanoid races on it's 3 continents. The largest continent, Electrum, was home to the roaming orcish nomads, created of the Wind. The second largest, Sercea, was home to the water-made spiritual Naga people. And the smallest, Cytherea, was home to the Earthborn Dwarves. History has now forgotten what happened to the creators of this sleepy world, but as Gods are inclined to do, once finding this lonely little sphere a pantheon and a rival dark pantheon "adopted" it and introduced chaotic elements to the well ordered planet. First and foremost, they crafted a race of fire, Humans, to bring the spark of ambition to Charnos. Then they beckoned to the Feywild and Shadowfell and yet more races emerged. The tribes of unintelligent demi-humanoids were elevated, and the most powerful beings on Charnos, the Dragons, who had been ruling AS gods, were either deposed and banished, sent into hiding, or struck bargains with.
And so the world of Charnos began to change and rise from it's peaceful, but stagnant, past. Both great wonder and strife began to overtake it. One of the gods of the pantheon became to obsessed with this orphan world that he sacrificed some of his deific power to descend onto it and lead the people of one of the continents, becoming corrupt and Evil in the process, renaming Sercea to Nedeceus, after himself.
The Dwarves began to take slave races under their wings and even create their own, motivated to use some of the ancient and powerful magic they had stolen from what they claimed to be a god their people had slain thousands of years ago. They now prepare to expand and prove to the world that the Cythereans are the superior culture.
And Electrum, the largest continent, remains fragmented and lost in it's own size. The Empire dominates much of it's western coasts and further inland, but various tribal associations and city states dominate from the interior to the eastern coasts, including the dark undead-ruled Wound. If the continent were to pull together like Nedeceus and Cytherea have, they might be able to win the protracted wars, until then they will remain on the defensive...
Yes. War. It now defines Charnos. Ever since the three continents came into contact it just seemed as if fate decreed that it would be WAR, something the gods did not foresee. No one now remembers how the war began, just that Cytherea wants to expand and prove it's dominance, Nede's Crusade wishes to sweep the world and Electrum is just trying to hold together through it all, while girding their sons and daughters for battle on land or sea. It's a time in desperate need of heroes, indeed.
Characters
Vuzok - Dis iz de Orc Battlerager Fighter dat ObsidianOverlord iz playink! He gotz de bestest hat.
Bearer of Argent Dawn - Mysterious traveling sword, defending the weak and defying the depredations of the Empire! His mask is cooler than Vuzok's hat. (Played by Jaito)
Karas Stormcrow - Also a mysterious traveling sword. Likes thunderstorms, booze, and chasing skirts. His headband is more useful than BAD's mask. Played by Yurie`, luv.
Races
Aasimar(Deva): The Nedicean Aasimar are almost all grandchildren of the god Nede himself or of the celestial host he has summoned over the centuries to champion his now long corrupted cause of purging evil from Charnos and making it into a Good-aligned utopia. The noble social structure is made up almost entirely of Aasimar. As the actual Celestials and Half-Celestials are all warmarshals and generals, leading the training of his crusades, the administrative positions of his theocracy are filled by Aasimar clerics and paladins. A good portion of them, however, are also Paladin-commanders, leading columns of holy warriors.
Aasimar are as unmistakable as Tieflings, though in different ways. On their back is a pair of Astral Wings, spiritual constructs that act more as a signifier of their divine heritage than anything else unless they expend effort to allow the wings to interact physically with the world. Otherwise they remain silvery, feathered ghosts on the Aasimar's back, passing through clothing and armor alike. Other signs of their heritage include natural tattoos, preternatural attractiveness, glowing eyes and strange or intense skin and hair colors, from snowy white to statuesque ebony.
Ability Scores: +2 Wis, +2 Cha
Size: Medium
Speed: 6
Vision: Low-Light
Languages: Common, choice of one other.
Skill Bonuses: +2 Religion, +2 Acrobatics
Inner Light: As long as you are not bloodied you have +1 to all defenses.
Resist Radiance: You have Radiant Resistance 5.
Astral Glide Aasimar Racial Power
Encounter
Move Action Personal
Effect: You can fly your speed +2 for this action. If you end your flight in midair you fall.
Dragonborn: The Dragonborn are, obviously, a draconically descended race, surprisingly close in ancestry to the kobolds. The kobolds tend to think of the dragonborn as their big dumb cousins and dragons tend to think of them as the cute little guys who want to think they're really those two-legged humanoid races. The Dragonborn, to their credit, don't listen to either other race and comport themselves with honor, dignity and humility and are welcomed heartily throughout the world despite their intimidating stature and fierce looks.
Drow: The Dark Elves are sometimes called the First of Shadow and are the result of an unfortunate coincidence. At almost the very moment the Obsidian Emperor was defeated in the part of the high grasslands now called The Wound and his death cries forever changed the land and tainted it with the shadowfell a portion of the Feywild met worldfall there, and the sudden blending of planes irrevocably changed the Eladrin that came through... Now tainted with the power of the plane of shadows the Drow have become like a new people altogether, scraping together a harsh living in The Wound and surviving on deceit and theft on the more fortunate races. Many Drow make their way away from their tainted and now anchored home, seeking out a better, or simply easier, way of life. The drow have skin that ranges from deep black to midnight blue, white to inky hair and eyes in a variety of shockingly pale colors.
Dwarves: The First of Earth on Charnos, according to legend they were crafted from the soil and rock of the continent of Cytheria by the hands of an oppressive god who their ancestors overthrew and usurped, stealing all it's secrets. They indicate their advanced magitechnology and their primal connection to the earth of Cytheria as evidence of this. They have the capacity to create their own species of servitor beings, of which the Troglodytes and the Gnomes are the only examples so far, heralding a godlike power to manipulate the building blocks of life. Their sprawling cities, both above and below ground, are full of conveniences and necessities that the other empires simply cannot fathom. Dwarves are born very seldomly as the contented, individualistic dwarven oligarchs are busy with their own affairs and seldom marry, let alone have children. The end of the dwarven lifecycle is unique as well and removes immediacy from the life of a Dwarf. A Dwarf that meets a natural death on Cytherian soil becomes permanently part of the land, living as a Cytherian Guardian, an elemental of earth, for all eternity.
There are Dwarves on Electrum as well, descendants of immigrants who tired of their fellows' ways. They organize themselves into Clans to distance themselves from their conceited forebears and are stalwart allies against the Cytherean dwarves, though they do encounter an amount of prejudice.
Elves and Eladrin: The current day fey folk of Charnos are, in fact, the descendents of immigrants of Thilsedrad ("From the West" in the local Elven tongue) meaning they came from other planes through the feywild and settled there. As such, the Elves do not have their own nation and in fact blend with human society fairly consistently, minus complications that arise from the long fey lifespan. For instance, Elves and Eladrin are seldom accepted into longterm governmental positions as it is considered very unfair to the shorter lived races. Eladrin blend as Elves do, but some remain in their mystical cities, only emerging into Charnos during a worldfall.
Gnomes: One of two servitor races created by the dwarves, the Gnomes are treated as second class citizens, just above slaves in the pecking order. They are primarily crafters and house servants, allowed to learn magic in special academies created for them. Very few gnomes are brought up to fight, those who are are exclusively wizards who lead Troglodyte battle groups. Gnomes who escape to Electrum have many horrible tales to tell of twisted experiments, meant to be a third servitor race, but not yet complete.
Halfings: The halfling race on Charnos came about due to the mercurial nature of human genetics. They first sprang up as a human subrace, but slowly began to form their own subcultures within human ones. From then on it was understood that where humans could be found, halflings could be found. Humans are rather protective of their little cousins as well, and it's known that if you pick on a halfling his bigger brother will be along to show you what for. Halfling and Humans, in fact, sometimes form almost lifelong friendships where they refer to themselves as "cousins" and for all intents and purposes are family.
Humans: The First of Fire. The humans were introduced to Charnos after the current pantheon found the abandoned realm and introduced them to relieve the stagnant societies that had been built by the other First Races. They are known for their adaptability and their ambition, very little stopping a human being from reaching his or her goals.
Kobold: An extremely content race, completely assured of their own superiority due to their draconic heritage. Small and arrogant, as insufferable as Kobolds can be to deal with they are very good smiths and crafters and their wares are highly sought after. They primarily travel in small caravans when outside of their mine homes and
Naga: The First of Water, this spiritual race are snake from the waist down and primarily human-like from the waist up, though green tinted skin, scaly patterns, snake-eyes and sharp fangs aren't uncommon. They stick mostly to the swamps of Electrum now as they've been driven from their ancestral homes by Nede and live primarily monastic lives, supported by a culture that exalts purity and strength of mind and body.
+2 Str, +2 Wis
Speed: 6 Squares
Languages: Common, Draconic
Skill Bonuses: +2 Endurance +2 Athletics
Vision: Normal
Aqua Vitae: +5 racial bonus to save against poison.
Slithering Movement: You ignore natural difficult terrain. Difficult Terrain as a result of a power effect affects your movement normally.
Tail Slam: You have Tail Slam as an encounter power.
Tail Swipe Naga Racial Power
Encounter
Attack: Strength, Constitution or Dex +2 (+4 at 11th level, +6 at 21st) vs. Reflex
Hit: 1d6 + Str, Con or Dex and knockdown.
Special: When you first gain this power, choose Strength Constitution or Dexterity for it. You may not change this decision later.
Orcs: The First of Wind are a flighty, nomadic people with strong tribal ties but no permanent homes. They revel in strength and conflict, often challenging each other or other peoples to friendly brawls, and sometimes not-so-friendly raids when times are hard. Orcs who live in the cities are most often traders or craftsman who send home the finer things made in the cities for their tribal goods, often thought stylish by the upper crust of society.
Orcs also get +2 to the skills Endurance and Intimidate and +1 will as racial modifiers.
Tieflings: This strange and widely varied race of demonblooded scoundrels have a reputation for trickery and silver-tongued deceit, sometimes unfairly earned and other times perfectly fitting. Tieflings blend a great dearth of vestigial but obvious demonic traits (Such as tails, horns, unusual cold or warmth, sharp teeth, unusual hair, eye and skin color, vestigial wings, etc.) with human blood, having the supernatural genetics of the infernal or abyssal within them. Whatever their reputation, Tieflings also have the savvy to make themselves fit in wherever they really WANT to.
Warforged: Warforged are a product of Cytherean engineering, part flesh and part mechanical living constructs, powered by a willingly transferred soul. The idea originally was to be able to carry on a person's experience and memory long past their lifespan and ensure they would be useful and strong for much longer than normal, however there was a glitch in the process. The spark of the soul did transfer, but not the memories or experiences, effectively creating a new person entirely, though with perhaps the lingering echoes of their former life. The designs for warforged were stolen long ago and now they can be found on all three continents in varying numbers, though they are very rare. It is usually those of little or no faith in the gods that decide to give their soul to a warforged, believing that this way they will live on and remain productive to society. The warforged themselves look humanoid to varying degrees, some have very human faces, others have very armor-like, alien faces. They are generally accepted wherever they go, and some even give them a measure of additional respect, like walking monuments in a way.
Deities
The Pantheon
- Ribald the Emperor. (Unaligned) God of Law, Justice, Fate, Civilization and Cities.
- Ribald the Emperor is the patron deity of the empire of Electrum and is often considered the leader of the pantheon of light. He is a figure of utmost authority, appearing as a man clad from head to toe in ornate platinum armor with a cloak of white fur and violet felt. All laws set forth in the land of Electrum are consecrated in His name, as are new settlements.
- Phiraun the God-and-Goddess. (Good) Deity of Purity, Love, Compassion, Sex and Generosity.
- Considered to be one of the strongest forces of Good in the world, Phiraun appears as a man and woman, seperate but always either holding hands or entwined and always speaking in one beautiful, loving voice. Temples to Phiraun are also houses of pleasure, holy courtesans attending to body, mind and soul and expecting only donations in return, though it is well known that soldiers and paladins don't even need that. The clerics and paladins of phiraun are very well loved for their generosity and compassion and are famed for an equal righteous anger and ferocity in the face of evil and destruction, which can be surprising given their God-and-Goddess' purviews.
- Thesta the White. (Lawful Good) Goddess of Scholars, Doctors, Alchemy, Light and Knowledge.
- Appearing as an older woman in a doctor's coat and spectacles, Thesta is matron goddess of the schools of Electrum. She is prayed to for most scholarly pursuits, including good test scores for the young, as well as for healing of the sick and injured as the knowledge she presides over includes medicine and the sciences. Whearas Phiraun is most often seen as a mystical deity of magical healing, it's Thesta who is the inspiration for mundane doctors and apothecaries the world over.
- Xephal the Mysterious. (Unaligned) Deity of Secrets, Luck and Shadows.
- This strange and alien god is often depicted as an empty cloak, it's gender or looks unknown. Xephal is prayed to by those who believe in living on luck, those who wish to hide or keep secrets and those who want to reveal secrets and solve mysteries alike. Many rogues and thieves look to Xephal for guidance in their craft, and most people at least once in their life wish for a bit of luck from it.
- Kerathis the Wild. (Unaligned) Goddess of Plants, the wilderness and animals of all kinds.
- Kerathis is one of the odder gods in the pantheon. She is depicted totemically as a beast woman of indeterminate origin, but very animalistic. All of the animals and spirits of the natural world pay her heed, as do rangers and those who make their livings off the land. Rather than praying, people often perform ritual hunts or sacrifices of crops to her, as Kerathis understands only the languages and ways of the beastly world. She has very few Clerics and almost no Paladins, but many Primal heroes exist in her name.
- Kundali the Insightful. (Lawful Good) God of Self Improvement, Honor and Ancestry.
-Depicted as an old man with a long beard of parchment, written through with proverbs and koans, and a third eye in the center of his forehead, Kundali is most popular among the Naga and Dwarves but is prayed to by any who wish to better themselves. He is a deity who teaches his worshipers to prize honor, fairness, honesty and adherence to traditional ways above all things. He is also a god of filial bonds and is the second most called upon god to bless births and marriages next to Phiraun.
- Akhet the Watchful. (Unaligned) God of Death, Prophecy and Guidance.
- Akhet is depicted as a tall, bald, dark-skinned man with piercingly intelligent and perceptive eyes and a lantern in one hand. He is a god of the desperate and for those who revere death, a guide and teacher, but also a mysterious and foreboding reminder that death meets us all eventually. Time brings all to the same end and Akhet will guide them beyond the Shadows and into the next world. Akhet sees the undead as things to be pitied, souls who have lost their way, and encourages his servants to destroy them where they can.
- Mirielle the Traveler. (Good) Goddess of Roads, Rivers, Bards, Adventure and Travel.
- Mirielle is depicted as a free spirited young woman, full of verve and attitude. Her followers often follow suit. She's the matron goddess of adventurers, travelers and nomads and anyone walking or riding a dangerous road whispers a prayer to her. Her worshipers are often loose, fun-loving people who dislike staying in one place for too long. Ships and wagons are blessed in her name and adventuring companies who name themselves often pray to Mirielle to "make it official." Mirielle and Phiraun are known to be great friends and those who worship one often worship the other as well,
Evil Gods
- Vexurthil the Defiler. (Chaotic Evil) God of Rape, Desecration, Disease, Domination and Pain.
- Urukardt the Bloodthirsty. (Chaotic Evil) God of Murder, Dishonorable Combat and Pillage.
- Sylan the Selfish. (Evil) Goddess of Theft, Scorn, Greed, Vengeance and Disloyalty.
- Liesel the Vain. (Evil) Goddess of Immortality, Deceit, Undeath, Infidelity and forbidden magic.
- Nede the Mad. (Evil) Was once a good god, but is now a god of conquest, misbegotten causes, insanity and imperialism.
Geography
Electrum
- Imperial Electrum
- Dominating much of Electrum's western coasts and a very good portion inland, the Empire is ruled by a pair of Dragons. Beth the Silver and Sen the Gold have ruled Electrum since before the Pantheon came and humans set foot on the planet, however after the First of Fire appeared they both finally consolidated their power and formed a formal government and now act as co-rulers. One remains in the empire as ruler, supported and balanced by a council, while the other goes out and spends time in their draconic form and does as they please for 50 years before returning and trading places. The Empire is considered a center of progress and expansion for all free races, only stymied by the seemingly endless and beginningless war between it and the other two great nations. Add to the fact that the continent of Electrum is so vast comparatively and there are many other factions and peoples to worry about there and it becomes clear why they haven't been able to do much more than defend themselves for the past millennium, though they defend themselves WELL.
- Senko
- Northeast of the Empire and north of the Grand Plainslands, the chilly lands of Senko are home to ancestor-worshipping city-states who are often in feud with one another due to long forgotten sleights. The fighting isn't usually very open, but heated rivalries between states is common and they will clash over resources and business dealings as often as the young and impetuous trade sword blows. It has a reputation for being a land of slanderous tiefling nobles and hotheaded dwarven patriarchs.
- Grand Plainslands
- One of the largest single areas on the continent, the Grand Plains are home to countless villages, cities and the nomadic Orc tribes.
- The Wound
-Once a part of the Grand Plainslands, The Wound was once a short-lived empire to a terribly powerful warlock called the Obsidian Emperor. With his command of the dead and powers over shadow he brought the people to heel under his rule until a group of heroes struck him down. His death released so much terrible dark power bound into what used to be his soul that the land was forever tainted, blended with the Shadowfell forever more. It's now a land of the undead, the dark elves and a few desperately surviving settlements too enshrouded in darkness to escape the hell of The Wound.
- Diamondwind Dunes
-The southernmost area of the continent, the Diamondwind Dunes is a vast desert, home to few but strewn with deserted ruins and catacombs of as yet unknown origin. The majority of settlements in the area are built up around archaeological sites or are Orcish camps. The desert gets it's name for the fine, glittery, glass-like nature of the sand, beautiful, but dangerous during windstorms.
- The Sentinel's Teeth
-The northernmost area of the continent, the Sentinel's Teeth Mountain Range, also called The Knives. The Knives are considered to be the most dangerous mountains in the world. They are, as their name indicates, disturbingly tall and sharply angular, making climbing almost unnaturally difficult, even when you don't count the year-round icy weather. The Teeth have very little draw for civilized folk or nomads, but certain dangerous demihuman tribes have been pushed up into the mountains by Electrum or Senko military forces. Making it a source of much trouble and strife.
- The Vermillion Archipelago
-The Vermillion Archipelago is a balmy stretch of island chains that lead off of the Diamondwind Dunes and link almost unbreakingly all the way to Cytherea. Unsurprisingly much of the archipelago is under constant warfare as both factions attempt to keep control of the islands for hopping travel.
